"Worst experience of my life"

I was referred to the hospital following what had already been an ordeal. I spent the previous day in Whitechapel hospital having been referred there; and the folk at Whitechapel proceeded to refer me to my GP to request an ultrasound. My GP sent me to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital urgently with a letter from herself expressing her concern and requesting the scan. I waited for 1.5 hours before a nurse came to fetch me. I relayed the story (for the 10th time) before he asked if I wanted pain killers (to which I obliged as the pain had gotten worse) and they asked me to give a urine sample (despite having cleared 3 urine samples in the last 24 hours. I left, went to the bathroom to do yet another pee-in-a-cup wondering why this was necessary, and then waited in the waiting room for my painkillers to arrive before seeing the doctor. I waited for 1 hour before going to reception to ask when my painkillers would arrive, where they arrogantly dismissed me saying 'soon'. I waited in total 1 hour 30 minutes for the painkillers (total time in hospital now = 3 hours, still no doctor). There were NO drinking cups in the waiting room and I was watching everyone there struggle to bend down to put their lips around the water fountain (talk about spreading a disease). Finally, after waiting a total of 4 hours I was seen to by a doctor. This was the worst experience of my life. From the minute I walked in, the doctor was rude and dismissive. I was crying, shocked at how much they lacked empathy, and was making me feel pathetic. I started to describe my story and they constantly interrupted, abruptly repeating one thing I had said (often incorrectly) before urging me to move on. I showed them the THREE referral letters I had from a.) the sexual health clinic St Barts b.) WhiteChapel A&E c.) my GP; all stated that I needed an ultrasound. The doctor refused to let me see a gynaecologist or get an ultrasound and continued to talk to me in a demeaning, emotionless manner.

I was distraught that I'd spent the best part of 2 full days in waiting rooms to get a test done that quite clearly is needed, was feeling increasingly worse, and they completely dismissed me from the hospital without so much as guidance for next steps forward or any constructive advice of what I should do to fix the mistakes in the administration that had been made (i.e. to ask my GP to call the hospital and make an appointment). The doctor did not so much as blink when I said I'd lost all faith in the NHS, that I didn't understand why they were making me feel like it was MY FAULT for waiting there for 4 hours only to be dismissed, when all I was doing was following the orders from the medical practitioners I had seen. After leaving, I passed out and vomited in the underground, whose staff cared for me better than the A&E.

Of course I refused to get into the ambulance they called - how were they going to help?